Response by G.I.'s Mixed As Hillary Clinton Visits

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Hillary Rodham Clinton charmed American troops at a U.S.O. show here, but it didn't hurt that the singer Sheryl Crow and the comedian Sinbad were also on the stage.

In her appearance at Tuzla Air Base, the First Lady told a couple of thousand of the 19,300 Americans serving in Bosnia that they were using military power to advance United States interests and values. She said they were part of "the kind of peacekeeping mission every American should be proud of and support."

I just hope you have some feeling of how proud and grateful all America is," she said.

Today's visit came as some troops, living uncomfortably and often dangerously, continue to wonder about the value of their mission.

During her daylong visit to American forces at three bases in northeast Bosnia, Mrs. Clinton repeated that the United States had a genuine interest in keeping Europe stable. In addition, she said, the effort to stop the war here is the moral and right thing to do.

Among the troops, reaction to the visit ranged from great enthusiasm to only mild interest.

At another camp, named Alicia, from where 600 soldiers in the First Squadron, Fourth Cavalry patrol the zone of separation between the Bosnian Government and Bosnian Serb armies, many soldiers crowded in to see Mrs. Clinton and her daughter, Chelsea.

When they walked through the camp, there was an almost constant clicking and whirring as soldiers took photographs.

As soldiers nudged past each other for a chance to have their picture taken with Mrs. Clinton, Maj. Gen. William L. Nash, the commander of American forces in Bosnia, said: "Look at that. Look at those smiles. It really makes them happy to have her here."

Sgt. Errol Kennedy, from New York City, whooped to his friends: "She's the greatest First Lady we've ever had! I'm ready to spend another year here now."

But two soldiers next to him said they would just as soon go home now and let Sergeant Kennedy do their work.

Another soldier said he thought that it was all right for Mrs. Clinton to visit, but "everyone really wants to see Sheryl Crow and Sinbad."

Mrs. Clinton's message that American interests and moral values are at stake in Bosnia is not universally accepted among the people she came to thank.

Some soldiers, especially those living in the worst conditions or those whose duties do not allow them to see many of the Bosnians who benefit from their efforts, say they do not fully understand the objective here.

Some feel they are exposed to unreasonable discomfort and risk compared with the likelihood of a permanent end to the war.

Two soldiers, Specialist Brent Ingersoll and Specialist Grant Johnavan, both of the Third Squadron, Fifth Cavalry, based about an hour and a half's drive northwest from Tuzla, were talking about the impending visit last Friday. They were not impressed.

Asked what he would like to tell Mrs. Clinton about his assignment, Specialist Ingersoll, of Williston, N.D., said, "I wouldn't talk to her, because I'd probably say something rude."

"Unless she can get us sent back home, there's not much she can do for us," he said, wiping rain from his face. "When she leaves, she'll go back to her family, maybe have a drink, and relax. We can't do any of that."

Specialist Johnavan agreed: "That's right. She'll be there and we'll be here."

Specialist Ingersoll added: "For what? So that we can run over a mine, or slide off the road and get killed? And there's no one going to tell me that when we finally do get home the fighting won't start up again."

Specialist Johnavan replied: "Yeah, but you know, when we first got here you hardly ever saw people out of their homes, because they were afraid. Now I can see them all over, and at least I know something good is starting to happen. That's worth something."

At another camp here, known as Bedrock, Mrs. Clinton visited what officers described as a state-of-the-art military field hospital. In one ward she spoke briefly with Pvt. Joseph Dory, 22, who was injured on Friday in a truck accident that killed Pfc. Floyd Bright, 19.

In a meeting with representatives of international relief agencies, Mrs. Clinton announced that the United States was donating $25 million to repair 2,500 homes damaged in the war.

She said the money would be given to nonprofit organizations that would use local labor and materials.

Correction: March 29, 1996

A caption on Tuesday with a picture by The Associated Press showing the visit of Hillary Rodham Clinton to Bosnia omitted the identity of a man shown with her on a stage in Tuzla. He was Secretary of the Army Togo West.

A version of this article appears in print on March 26, 1996, on Page A00010 of the National edition with the headline: Response by G.I.'s Mixed As Hillary Clinton Visits. Order Reprints|Today's Paper|Subscribe